The Mech Touch

He didn't know what Star Designers were like and never imagined that one would be so friendly and approachable.

Of course, his identity and relations were a bit special so the Polymath might find it worth it to make an extra effort this time.

As much as Ves wanted to keep chatting with this friendly Star Designer who occasionally revealed high-level news as if they were random gossip, a person of her stature didn't have all day to chat with Journeyman.

"I cannot remain present here for an extended amount of time." She stated. "Let us discuss the proposal that you have initially offered to Mr. Armalon."

Ves blinked for a moment. It took several seconds for him to recall how he attracted so much attention from the MTA to begin with. Several months went by since he last worked on the Fearless Project.

"I offered an… exchange to him, yes." He carefully said. "If the MTA approves of my attempt to arm my mechs with larger and heavier luminar crystal rifles, I agreed to… contribute to the Association by sharing one of my latest and most useful innovations."

The Polymath smiled and slightly leaned forward. "Indeed. Your sense of duty is admirable, but I presume your application is not thoroughly tested as of yet, am I correct?"

"I've used on a couple of people and they are all fine. Ketis managed to become the first Journeyman who is also a Swordmaster due to the advantage that I bestowed. I am so confident in this invention that I have even applied it to myself and my immediate family."

"Those are reckless actions, but it appears this is your standard modus operandi."

"I do not always have a choice, Your Excellency." Ves gently pushed back. "Life outside the protective umbrella of the Mech Trade Association is much more perilous. I don't have the time and luxury to take it slow. Sometimes, I am already under threat and am desperate enough to require an immediate boost of power. Many of my successful innovations have gone on to tilt the balance and allowed me to survive numerous different crises."

"I am not adminishing you, Mr. Larkinson. I am only making an observation. However, outside of emergency situations, it is better to control the risks to a greater degree. There are good reasons why proper research projects can take years, decades or even centuries to conclude. You should consider my words."

This was quite an impactful message considering its source. The Polymath was famed as a research-mad Star Designer. She branched out in so many different fields but still managed to generate a huge amount of successful advances in every discipline!

Yet Ves did not give in to her advice. Her words may be appropriate in most cases, but he was not a nerd who holed himself up in one of the most secure research institutions in human space.

He had already embarked on a grand expedition and was just about to lead his clan into untamed space. How could he possibly apply proper research methodologies when mechs and aliens were attacking him left and right?

Ves wanted to move on from this topic.

"Does the MTA approve of my companion spirits?"

"Generally, no, and not because this invention of yours is untested." She stated. "Your qualifications as a psionic manipulator are highly dubious. The long-term consequences of your various creations are unknown. Rightfully speaking, it will take at least half a century of observation for us to obtain preliminary confidence in the safety of your companion spirits. Even then, we will never put our full trust in them if we are not able to break them down and reverse engineer their principles."

This was not good news to Ves. "This is the same way you treat alien technology like luminar crystal technology."

"Indeed." The Star Designer nodded. "I hope you can see the parallels here. The only technology that humanity is allowed to use in a widespread manner is technology that is fully understood and replicable."

"Doesn't that mean that innovations like mine can still be used at a smaller scale, Your Excellency? I mean, I understand why your Association holds this stance. You don't want alien technology to be used as a trojan horse for hostile entities. However, it should be fine if we only keep companion spirits to ourselves and maybe a few other people, right?"

"You are correct. We have held extensive discussions on this matter. To be honest, if Mr. Armalon himself did not indicate that he is eager to receive this augmentation, we would not allow you to apply it to any mecher. You are fortunate that he is willing to brave the risks and bear the consequences."

It sounded as if Jovy truly helped Ves out this time.

"I am grateful for his confidence in my work. I will not betray his trust."

The Polymath shook her head. "That is not enough, Mr. Larkinson. I not only need you to sign a secret contract, I also need you to make a more extensive promise to me. I do not want to leave open any possibility that you can manipulate, tamper or threaten a mech designer who may one day occupy a high position."

Her concerns were understandable. If Ves truly wanted to, he could turn the companion spirit he intended to bestow to Jovy into a trojan horse. With his spiritual engineering capabilities, he could think of several ways to accomplish this feat, hopefully without anyone growing wiser.

Ves would never do that, though. Not only would he be acting against the best interests of his clients, he also didn't screw over someone he considered a friend. Jovy had helped him out numerous times and it would be a profound betrayal if he sought to exploit the MTA Journeyman.

He just needed to convey his seriousness to the Polymath.

"I promise that if I bestow a companion spirit to Mr. Jovy Armalon, I will provide what we have agreed upon and nothing more. The companion spirit will belong solely to Mr. Armalon and I or anyone else will not possess any relations or means of spying or control with either of them. Regardless of what I can do to Jovy or his companion spirit, I will never exploit either of them to obtain confidential secrets related to the Mech Trade Association and its members in any way."

He had to recite a lot more sentences which encompassed all kinds of scenarios before he was done.

The Polymath paid careful attention to him all this time for anything amiss. It didn't matter though because he did not attempt to fudge his promise.

"Very well." The woman leaned back with a satisfied look. "After this meeting, you may converse with Mr. Armalon about the details of your upcoming service. This will largely be a personal matter between yourself and him, so we will not pose any further demands with regards to the companion spirit."

That sounded nice, but bestowing Jovy with his own little companion spirit was supposed to be a bribe. How could he provide such a valuable boon without getting anything in return?!

"Uhm, Your Excellency, about my heavy luminar weapons…"

"Earlier, we briefly discussed the threat posed by the Common Fleet Alliance." She said. "I did not bring it up without cause. The CFA already stands to grow stronger when it has successfully incorporated phasewater technology in its battleships. If these enormous vessels are armed with luminar crystal weapons that can be scaled to a cataclysmic level, our ace mechs and god mechs may lose their advantages that we have relied upon to hold our ground against the CFA."

Uh oh. That did not sound so good.

"However… if you can truly deliver upon your promise to secure your tech with unbreakable security measures, then we may be persuaded to grant you an exemption."

"Really, ma'am?!" Ves became enthusiastic again.

This was great news! He could finally resume his work on the Fearless Project if the MTA no longer stood in his way. Even though the project was horribly behind compared to his other ones, at least he would have a more effective answer against expert mechs in future battles!"

"I am not finished yet." She stated as she pinned him with a serious gaze. "You must secure all of your luminar crystal weapons with this protective safeguard, even the ones that you have already made such as the main weapon of your Amaranto. If you cannot accomplish this task within a year, then I shall order Mr. Armalon to confiscate your clan's existing luminar crystal weapons and seize all of your existing research files on this tech. We will also insist that you never conduct any research and development activities on any form of luminar technology again unless you have our express authorization."

This was too much! Ves almost wanted to rise from his seat!

"I cannot accept these terms, Your Excellency. This does not conform to my prior agreement with Master Willix."

The Polymath did not accept this excuse. "I believe she has explicitly mentioned to you that the agreement that you are referring to is subject to change. Well, I am changing it right now. We have a much more thorough estimation of the potential of luminar crystal technology and what it can do. The Common Fleet Alliance has shown more worrying signs as of late so the possibility that the fleeters can exploit your tech is of much greater concern."

He had no choice but to abide by these revised terms. The MTA was in charge here and everyone knew it. He bowed his head.

"As you say, then. I will endeavor to come up with a protective measure as soon as possible. Can you tell me how secure it will have to be? I would be able to work more effectively if I become aware of the standard that you wish to apply."

The Star Designer paused for a second. "We will approve of your security measure if I am unable to crack it. That should be an appropriate standard."

Ves gulped. This was quite a huge demand! He had no idea how powerful she was, let alone her capables in the spiritual arena.

Even though most mech designers were fairly inept when it came to spiritual manipulation and spiritual perception, he had a feeling that Star Designers were quite different from the norm!

"I… do not have a good impression of this standard of yours. Could you… give me a demonstration?"

It was a presumptuous request, but the Polymath appeared to be in a good enough mood to assent.

"If that is what you wish. Get ready. Please summon your companion spirit."

"Blinky, come out. It's safe." Ves called.

Mrow…

The intangible purple Star Cat carefully emerged out of his head. Even though the Polymath contained herself so well that not even a cat as sensitive as Blinky could figure out her depth, the companion spirit was still frightened!

The Polymath raised her hand and somehow exerted an effect that caused Blinky to uncontrollably fly to her hand!

Ves was shocked and frightened at this seemingly casual display of power!

If she could do something like this without breaking a sweat, then what could she truly do if she got serious?

Mrow! Mrow!

Though Blinky squirmed in the Polymath's grip, she did not treat him harshly.

"Interesting. This is an interesting specimen. I can see that it is truly a part of yourself that you have turned into another facet. I have encountered many fascinating inventions in my life. I made many of them in fact. I have never created anything comparable to this, however. Fascinating."

Though Ves was glad to receive the praise of someone of her stature, he also grew worried about what she might do next.